SAVANNAH, Ga. - The University of New Mexico volleyball team improved to 4-1 with a 3-0 win Friday morning against UNC Asheville (0-4) in the opening day of the Tiger Invitational hosted by Savannah State University. New Mexico took the first two sets 25-22 and 25-20, and trailed 14-5 at one point in the third set before going on a 20-point run to close out the set and match, 25-14.

"We came out a little flat and slow and just struggled to find energy," head coach Jeff Nelson said. "We eventually got some good, consistent play in our hitting and our serving and that was the difference in the match."

"Elsa Krieg hit great at the net and served a ton of points for us," Nelson said. "Chantale had a couple of big blocks and also hit well for us and that was what kept us where we need to be. We'll have to pick it up a lot for tonight's match. We're playing a team that has a lot of experience, but I think we'll be ready to go. We needed this morning's match to get us moving and get our energy level up after traveling. I thought by the end of the match against UNC Asheville we were playing pretty well."

The Lobos came out a bit tentative in the first set, trading points with UNC Asheville before putting on a small 3-0 run to claim a 10-7 lead. New Mexico continued to pull away, leaning on the net play of Ashley Newman, Riddle and Lexi Ross. The Bulldogs came within two before New Mexico rallied off four-straight points making it 17-11 Lobos. UNM maintained a two-point lead or better the remainder of the first game and took it on a kill from Riddle, 25-22.

New Mexico took a 4-1 lead in the second set, but Asheville worked its way back and tied the set 6-6. The Bulldogs and the Lobos traded points before a kill and back-to-back aces from Elsa Krieg put the Cherry and Silver back on track with a 10-7 advantage. The Lobos built on the lead, using big swings by Riddle and Krieg, and claimed the set on a Newman kill, 25-20.

The Bulldogs rattled off three unanswered points to open the third match before a kill from Riddle put New Mexico on the board. UNM was plagued by errant passing, allowing UNC Asheville to accumulate a 10-3 advantage prompting a timeout by the Lobos. The Bulldogs continued to tack on points and established a 14-5 edge, calling for another UNM breather.

This time New Mexico came out and responded big, going on a 20-0 run, thanks in large part to six service aces by Krieg. The sophomore served 19-straight points and had eight ace serves in the match, ranking her second in UNM history for single-match aces. Nine is the record set by Kelly Knowles on Sept. 17, 1982 against Washington.